Negotiators for D65 School Board and DEC Resume Negotiations

By Larry Gavin

Teachers rally in support of their negotiating team on Oct. 16.

Updated Oct. 21. Negotiators for the District 65 School Board and the District Educators Council, the teachers union, returned to the bargaining table on Oct. 16 in an attempt to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. No deal was reached and an additional bargaining session is scheduled for Oct. 22.

The teachers’ contract expired over the summer, and teachers have been working without a contract since that time. Pat Markham, the District’s director of communications, told the RoundTable that teachers are being paid under the salary schedule provided in the old contract.

Rejection of the Tentative Agreement
Over the summer break, on June 17, negotiators for DEC and the School Board reached a tentative agreement, but it was not put to a vote until teachers returned from summer vacation. When the vote was taken on Sept. 3, eighty-five percent of the teachers voted to reject the deal, sources told the RoundTable. After the Sept. 3 vote, DEC’s negotiating team said it wanted to survey teachers to determine what teachers wanted to see in a new contract before returning to the bargaining table.

Both sides have refused to disclose the terms of the tentative agreement, citing an agreement to maintain its confidentiality. Before the tentative agreement was reached, however, the School Board said it had offered to increase the teacher salary schedule by about 5.7 percent each year, but requested that teachers work an additional 11 minutes in the classroom each day and be present a total of an additional 20 minutes per day at the schools.

DEC’s negotiating team maintained that the effective pay increase was less than one percent per year because the Board was insisting that the teachers’ workday be increased by about five percent.

It is unclear how these issues were addressed in the tentative agreement reached by the negotiating teams and rejected by members of DEC on Sept. 3.

The Teachers Rally
On Oct. 16 at 5:30 p.m., one-half hour before the start of renewed contract negotiations, about 250 teachers packed the first floor atrium of the Joseph E. Hill Administration Center to show support for their negotiators.

Teachers loudly cheered speakers at the half-hour rally, and chanted, “Hey, hey, ho, ho, that 20 minutes has to go,” and “Yes we can…get a contract.”

Many teachers raised signs saying, “We support our team” and “Qualified teachers deserve a contract.”

Dorothy Millard, president of DEC, told the teachers, “This shows the District we have your support, we are united. We want a contract that shows that your hard work, your expertise, and your commitment are appreciated.”

David Futransky, president of the teachers union for School District 202, said teachers at the high school supported teachers at District 65.

Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky said, “I wanted to express my solidarity with the teachers here in Evanston and to express my thanks for the work that you do.”

School Board’s Response
At the start of the School Board’s meeting on Oct. 20, Board President Mary Erickson said, “The Board of Education is disappointed we don’t have a contract with our teachers. We don’t have one because the teachers rejected our richest contract since the inception of tax caps, one that their nine-teacher bargaining committee and their ISBA representative unanimously recommended and we shook hands on. The Board stretched to provide this generous offer despite a levy tax cap that is 2.4 percent for this year.

“The Board stretched to make a generous offer because we recognize and we appreciate we are asking teachers to work a little longer each day. We’ve asked for a 20 minute extension in the school day. And this increase in instructional time is something we have heard again and again from the parents that come before us. It is something the administration believes in.

“The Board believes that it has stretched as far as it should, particularly when our nation and our taxpayers are confronted with a severe economic crisis with rising mortgage foreclosures, plummeting housing values and rising unemployment. The realities jeopardize the Board’s future revenues and we do not want the District in a position to face financial difficulties that force future cutbacks.”

Ms. Erickson said members of the School Board believe the tentative agreement that was rejected by members of DEC was fair, and they would like to reach a contract with DEC as expeditiously as possible.

Mixed-Level Classes at ETHS Challenged, Defended at PTSA Meeting

By Jennie Berkson

A wide variety of concerns and perspectives marked a sometimes disorganized and rancorous PTSA forum about mixed-level classes, scheduled in the wake of a surprise change to the senior English program which eliminated the honors-only level.

Over 150 people attended the forum, "Mixed-Level and Honors-Only Classes at ETHS: The Past, The Present and The Future" on Oct. 6.

Superintendent Eric Witherspoon provided a backdrop to the discussion through a review of the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act, the District's recent positive performance against those requirements and the comprehensive restructuring that has taken place through the System of Supports initiative and the reorganization of AVID, STAE and Project Excel.

In the context of the current celebration of ETHS's 125th anniversary, Dr. Witherspoon said, "In our 125-year history one of the things that would have to concern all of us is that if you measure it by standardized tests, students of color have not enjoyed the same success overall that the white kids have enjoyed at this school."

Administrators have taken steps recently to expand mixed-level classes to provide more opportunity for minority students to be exposed to honors-level work. They credit this effort and the more comprehensive support programs with the substantial improvements in standardized test scores for minority students this past year.

Although mixed-level classes, in some form or another, have been around "for decades" at ETHS, Dr. Witherspoon acknowledged that past efforts had been inadequate to meet the goal of improving the performance of lower achievers and at the same time provide sufficient challenge for higher achievers.

"If you measure it by standardized tests, students of color have not enjoyed the same success overall that the white kids have enjoyed at this school." -- District 202 Superintendent Dr. Eric Witherspoon

"In past years straight honors did move at a faster pace," Dr. Witherspoon said in response to questions from the audience about the difference between honors in an honors-only classes and honors in mixed-level classes. "One of the things that we're trying to do now is to have honors be honors - we're trying very hard to have the same curriculum. That was not always the case."

"I'd like to know why you have honors at all, then," asked one parent, who did not identify herself. "Unless you want to have an elitist school, why are you separating out honors?"

"You are asking the pertinent question," replied Dr. Witherspoon. "Because we didn't want to move too rapidly and make sure we got it right. But it does beg that question. That's what we're trying to do this year is to get this thing right, so that we can demonstrate that there is no difference between the straight honors and the mixed honors."

The same parent replied, "I've had children for ten years straight in the high school. The rigor of a mixed-level class doesn't come close to an honors class."

"You haven't gotten it right for that many years," she continued. "It seems half-baked, although I very much appreciate all the support you're doing. The teachers don't seem to be prepared to teach the mixed-level. Why would it be any different?"

Dr. Laura Cooper, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, attempted to provide further insight into changes being made to the mixed-level structures.

"We are redesigning the curriculum for Freshman Humanities so that there is one curriculum straight honors or mixed-level," she said.

Jennifer Fisher, History Department chair, echoed Dr. Cooper's remarks.

"I've been at this high school for 31 years," she said "and for the first time in [all those] years in Freshman Humanities, we are working on common assessments, common assignments and a common semester exam. We are doing really difficult work - I promise you that the history and English teachers are really committed to this."

Dr. Witherspoon conceded that mixed-level classes had not met expectations for rigor in past years, but said he was confident that the new approach would improve both challenge and performance. He also acknowledged that the process of making all senior English classes mixed-level, a cause of frustration and lack of trust for many at the meeting, had not conformed to the procedures he favored for such change and that it would not happen that way again.

Although the forum promised that administrators would present research on mixed-level classes and although the terms "research" and "studies" were used frequently in the defense of the expansion of mixed classes, little concrete information was provided. When such information was provided, its value was questioned.

"We are working with a national expert named Jessica Hockett [University of Virginia]," said Ms. Fisher, "and for the first time, teachers are being trained. We are being trained on something called differentiation of instruction which means we assess where kids are, what they need and how we can move them."

PTSA co-president Deborah Graham challenged the immediate value of the approach.

"In Freshman Humanities, we are working on common assessments, common assignments and a common semester exam. We are doing really difficult work - I promise you that the history and English teachers are really committed to this." -- Jennifer Fisher, History Department chair

"I served on the D65 enrichment committee, which spent months working on the issue of differentiation and how to implement it effectively, because it hasn't been working to date in D65," said Ms. Graham. "Jessica Hockett spoke to us and one of my big concerns that if you start from ground zero and you begin to implement a differentiation model it can take up to five years for results to begin to be felt. So what's going to happen to all of our kids during these next five, and especially when the teachers who are teaching these classes [have received only] two days of training this summer which isn't that much."

"For all the years I've lived in this community, I've had to listen to a community talk about students of color in a deficit model." - District 202 School Board President Martha Burns Other parents expressed similar concerns.

"I haven't heard anything about the honors kids raising their test scores," queried one parent. "How's it going to help our kids?"

Another remarked, "To make the argument that this is going to be of great benefit to the higher-achieving students is not a common-sense argument."

A different point of view was voiced by another parent. "We know there are kids that are not meeting standards and we have to put the resources there. You only have a limited amount of resources and you have to put the resources in the kids that are not meeting the standards."

District 202 Board President Martha Burns challenged the idea that "high achieving white students" had nothing to gain by being in a mixed-level class. "Kids of color bring capital to the classroom. For [all the] years that I've lived in this community, I've had to listen to a community talk about students of color in a deficit model." But then she struck a more positive note. "If we can't do it here [in Evanston], we can't do it anywhere. If the classrooms aren't working, we want to know about it."

A show of hands of the people left at the end of the two-and-a-half hour meeting indicated that many still had not been satisfied by the information presented. Ms. Graham suggested that the topic be continued at the next PTSA meeting, scheduled for Nov. 6.

D65: Using Assessments to Guide Instruction of Students

By Larry Gavin

Four years ago the District 65 School Board approved a goal to adopt a comprehensive curriculum-based assessment system. "The intent was not only to obtain outcome data for state assessments," said Paul Brinson, chief information officer, "but also to provide teachers with ongoing information about the progress that students are making in learning the State standards."

On Oct. 6, the administration presented the School Board with a report on the assessment system used by the District, which includes the Illinois Standard Achievement Test as well as other assessments selected or developed by the District.

In the last ten years, the District has increasingly focused on the importance of using assessment data to identify students who are at risk of failing, to diagnose the instructional needs of these students, to design an effective intervention, and to monitor and adjust the intervention if necessary.

Ongoing assessments are also essential to enable teachers to differentiate instruction in order to challenge each student in the classroom. Under the Tomlinson model of differentiated instruction recommended by the Differentiation and Enrichment Study Committee and approved by the Board in April, teachers must gather information about a student's knowledge, understanding and skill levels on a regular basis in order to make targeted adjustments to instruction and facilitate flexible grouping of students in the classroom.

Mr. Brinson said, "One of the goals is to have multiple sources of data. It is very bad practice to attempt to make decisions for students from a single point of time or a single source of data."
The District uses a variety of different assessments to measure reading, math and writing skills. It uses the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) test, developed by the Northwest Evaluation Association, for reading and math at grades 6-8, and is expanding MAP on a pilot basis to grade 5 this year. The District is discussing whether to expand it to lower grade levels.

Reading Assessments
Many of the assessments used by the District to assess literacy skills are standardized tests, some of which are given to students on an individual basis.

One of the tests was developed by the Illinois State Board of Education and can be used to regularly monitor the development of early literacy skills at grades K-2. Others are research-based tests developed by Pearson Education for grades K-8, designed to provide quick, accurate assessments to help target instruction for students. Still others are benchmark tests and unit tests aligned with the District's reading textbooks, the Macmillan/Mcgraw-Hill "Treasurers" program.

In addition to using the MAP test to assess literacy skills at the middle school level, the District administers the "Fiction Common Assessment" to sixth, seventh and eighth graders. This test, given in the first week of December, was designed by a committee of District 65 teachers and administrators using the District's learning standards as a foundation and can help pinpoint any problem area a student is having, said Ellen Fogelberg, District 65's literacy coordinator. "It mirrors the ISATs and tells us what kids are going to need to be prepared for the ISATs," she said. "Teachers consider it labor intensive," Ms. Fogelberg said. "However, they consider it one of the best assessments that we give, too, because it gives them so much information."

Math Assessments
Suzanne Farrand, math and gifted coordinator, said at the K-5 grade levels, "We want [math] teachers to keep an eye on kids on a daily basis." She said the new edition of the "Everyday Mathematics" texts contains specific assessment tasks "so that teachers are keeping track of kids on an ongoing basis."

In addition to using the MAP test at the middle school level, Ms. Farrand said, "Teachers give unit tests and quizzes all along." She added, "One of the big advantages we have now by having modern textbooks, which we haven't had for ten years, is the new texts are designed to provide much more ongoing assessment."

The District uses two standardized tests that are specifically designed to measure algebra readiness, she added.

Writing Assessments
Ms. Fogelberg said the District wants to make sure students understand the writing process and that they develop good writing skills. "The only way we can measure this over time is through a portfolio system. So we keep track of kids' writing over time. And we do that K-8."

Ms. Fogelberg said the District also made a conscious change last year to keep students' writing at school. "We want students to see writing as a work in progress," she said. "We want them to be doing their own drafting, their own revising, their own editing, and we know it's really hard when you see your child's piece of writing with a lot of errors, not to fix it yourself."

She said parents could review their child's writing portfolio at parent teacher conferences.

The MAP Tests
The MAP reading and math tests, which are taken on a computer, are used in more than 3,400 school districts nationwide. The tests are aligned with each state's standards and are often used as an indicator of preparedness for state assessments.

The tests are "unique," said Mr. Brinson in that they are "adaptive." The tests dynamically adjust to each student's performance level. Based on how well a student answered previous questions, the computer program selects a question of appropriate difficulty to display next. NWEA states, "This type of adaptive testing is a better indicator of a student's true achievement and academic needs than traditional assessment, which is often a single test given to all students and written for the average ability within a grade level."

Mr. Brinson said the District gives the MAP test to students at grades 6, 7 and 8 in the fall and spring; it is also given to struggling students in the winter. Mr. Brinson said the test will be given on a pilot basis to fifth-graders at five schools this fall, and to all fifth-graders this spring. One drawback in expanding the test is the limited number of computers available to take the test.
"Our teachers and principals at the middle school level have found the MAP assessment to be very useful, and it allows for us to measure student progress over time," Mr. Brinson said. "And so the idea is to extend it down into the elementary grades so we have additional information."
"The [math] teachers have found [the MAP test] really very useful because it gives us such detailed information about what children need to learn next," said Ms. Farrand. "It's particularly powerful for us to use for struggling students." She added that at the other end of the spectrum, "We have a lot of kids topping out on the MAP test, particularly at eighth grade."

"The data that we would gain from [extending MAP into the elementary grades] would be very helpful," Michael Robey, assistant superintendent said. "You can actually test students from kindergarten all the way up. The consistency of data that we would gain kindergarten through eighth grade would be phenomenal. "

"There is a tension. There's only so much testing any system can bear," said Dr. Murphy. "So right now the tension is between the MAP test and the curriculum-based assessments. …We're having a discussion about which test is going to be more valuable for us going into the future."

The EXPLORE Test Is Not Part of D65's Assessment System

School District 65 will not use the EXPLORE test as part of its assessment system, Superintendent Hardy Murphy and Chief Information Officer Paul Brinson told the RoundTable. EXPLORE is part of the ACT's family of tests, and may be given to eighth- or ninth-graders. Illinois eleventh graders take the ACT test as part of the statewide Prairie State Achievement Exam, PSAE.

While the performance of District 65 eighth-graders on the ISAT has improved substantially since 2003, they have not shown gains on the EXPLORE test, which has been given to District 65's eighth-graders by District 202 each December. Last January, District 202 administrators presented data reflecting that the average scale score (the standard-based score) for black and Hispanic eighth-graders on the EXPLORE test has been generally flat over the last six years.
In addition, in 2007 the percentage of black eighth-graders who performed in the top half nationally in reading on the ISAT was 73%, on EXPLORE it was 49%; the percentage of Hispanic eighth-graders who performed in the top half nationally on the ISAT was 80%, on EXPLORE it was 58%.

Dr. Murphy told the RoundTable, "We don't think it [the EXPLORE test] is an accurate measure of State standards." Mr. Brinson added that he did not believe EXPLORE was a valid or reliable indicator of student achievement because it contains only 30 questions per section and that its purpose was to counsel students, not to measure State standards.

According to the technical manual for the EXPLORE test, the test "is designed to measure students' curriculum-related knowledge and the complex cognitive skills important for future education and careers." The Illinois State Board of Education has launched a new program that allows public school districts to give the EXPLORE test no charge. In announcing the program, ISBE Superintendent Christopher Koch said he hoped the test would provide valuable information that could be used to prepare students for success on the PSAEs.

MAP Results Will Not Be Released to the Public

School District 65 administrators do not plan to publicly release District-wide results on the MAP test, Superintendent Hardy Murphy and Chief Information Officer Paul Brinson told the RoundTable. Dr. Murphy said they did not want to lift the data because it would be a distraction from the purpose of using the test as a diagnostic tool. Mr. Brinson said that while the MAP test was a valuable diagnostic tool used by teachers to guide instruction, he would not say it was a great test to measure student achievement.

Researchers with the Northwest Evaluation System used the MAP test as a yardstick in a study released last year called the "Proficiency Illusion" to conclude that a substantial portion of the higher pass rates on the Illinois Standard Achievement Tests, ISATs, were due to changes made to the test in 2006. Researchers analyzed the results from a group of Illinois schools where almost all students took both the MAP and ISAT tests in both 2003 and 2006; they found that while students made substantial gains between 2003 and 2006 on the ISATs, they did not make comparable gains on the MAP test. They concluded that the number of students who met standards on the 2006 ISATs increased by 12 percent due to changes that made the test easier to meet standards.

District 65 administrators have disputed the conclusions of the study and point out that the percentage of District 65 students meeting standards on the ISATs has steadily increased between 2003 and 2008; and in addition, that the percentage of District 65 students performing above the 50th percentile rank nationally, as measured by Stanford 10, which is embedded in the ISATs, has substantially increased over time.

D65 Serves 400 Students in Title I Programs

Here are some facts provided by School District 65 administrators concerning its Title I program. Title I is a federally funded program that provides supplementary funds to implement academic programs for eligible students.

A school district may designate as eligible any school attendance area in which at least 35% of the children (taking into account those who go to private schools) are from low-income families.
School District 65 has seven Title I schools: Oakton (66% low-income); Chute 57%); Dawes (53%); Washington (53%), Nichols (41%), Walker (41%), and King Lab (40%).

Students who require additional support in reading or in math at the middle school level and who reside in the attendance area of a Title I school may receive services in a Title I program. District 65 serves approximately 400 at-risk students in its Title I schools and an additional 30 students in private schools with Title I dollars.

District 65 receives approximately $960,000 in Title I funds. These funds must be used to supplement the regular curriculum. Most of the money is earmarked to hire additional teachers (11.5 full time equivalents) to provide reading and math interventions.

The District's report cards reflect that the number of low-income students (those who qualify for free or reduced-fee lunch) who met State standards increased from 67% in reading and 80% in math on the 2007 ISATs to 70% in reading and 81% in math on the 2008 ISATs.

If low-income students are excluded from the analysis, 81% of black students, 82% of Hispanic students and 97% of white students met standards in reading on the 2008 ISATs.

Public Hearings on D65 Strategic Plan

The District 65 Strategic Planning Committee has scheduled four town hall meetings to gather community input on a draft five-year strategic plan (reported in the Sept. 17 issue of the RoundTable). The meetings are each scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. as follows: Oct. 16 at Nichols Middle School; Oct. 22 at Haven Middle School; Oct. 28 at Chute Middle School; and Oct. 30 at King Lab Magnet School.

Members of the public are asked to limit comments to five minutes and to provide the Committee a written copy of the comments.

The plan contains a proposed mission statement, a statement of core values and goals to prioritize the District's focus during the next five years. Copies of the draft Strategic Plan are available at the Joseph E. Hill Education Center, at the District's schools, and on the Strategic Plan page of the District's website www.district65.net.

Reading Recovery Award

Connie Obrochta, literacy coach at Washington School, was awarded one of six national $15,000 scholarships from the Reading Recovery Council of North America's Teacher Leader Scholarship Awards funded by Deluxe Corporation Foundation.

The scholarship is to be applied toward a year of training at National-Louis University, where Ms. Obrochta will train as a Reading Recovery teacher leader.

Superintendent Murphy said, "District 65 has long appreciated the effectiveness of Reading Recovery for our students. Awarding this scholarship to Ms. Obrochta recognizes her hard work over the course of her career and affirms our commitment to Reading Recovery."

Ellen Fogelberg, District 65's literacy director, said, "We look forward to having her continued expertise in our District."

Ten D65 Schools Honored for PBIS

Ten District 65 schools were among the 250 Illinois schools recognized for outstanding efforts implementing Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS).

The principals at Bessie Rhodes, Dewey, King Lab, Kingsley, Lincoln, Lincolnwood, Nichols, Oakton, Orrington, Washington and Willard schools received congratulatory letters from the State Board of Education acknowledging their outstanding efforts in implementing PBIS.

The schools were recognized for demonstrating implementation and sustainability of PBIS practices that are designed to improve school climate and culture by promoting and supporting positive behavior.

Fall Fest at Washington School

Washington Elementary School will host its annual Fall Fest from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 18, rain or shine, on the grounds of the school, 914 Ashland Ave. The event - featuring pony rides, a moonwalk, pie toss, games, crafts, a pumpkin sale and refreshments - will help raise funds for school activities. For more information call the school office, 847-859-8180.

Haven Booster Club To Host Pancake Breakfast.

One hundred pounds of pancake mix, a few dozen eggs, 1,000 chicken sausage links, 60 volunteers, and seven gallons of syrup is a recipe for success at the Haven Pancake Breakfast, to be held 8-11 a.m. on Oct. 25. This annual community event is one of two major fundraising events held by the Booster Club throughout the year. Tickets are $7 each, and kids under three years old are free for an all-you-can-eat breakfast in the Haven School Cafeteria, 2417 Prairie Ave. Left to right in photo, Haven Middle School Booster volunteer coordinator Cindy Pingry, principal Kathy Roberson and food service manager Pearl Harbison get ready for the 13th Annual Haven Booster Club Pancake Breakfast.

Hispanic Youth Achievement Awards

The community was invited to attend the eighth annual Evanston Hispanic Youth Achievement awards ceremony at 7 p.m. on Oct. 14 in the Louis Room of Norris Center, 1999 North Campus Drive on the Evanston campus of Northwestern University.

A 6:30 p.m. reception preceded the presentation of the awards, which were established in 2001 as a collaboration between the Evanston Coalition for Latino Resources and Northwestern.
These awards honored exceptional Hispanic students in fourth through 12th grades in Evanston public schools, as selected by their teachers or school counselors.

Still No D65 Teacher Contract.

On Oct. 10, many District 65 teachers could be seen in the schools wearing buttons saying, "Highly Qualified Teacher Working Without A Contract."

The teachers' contract expired over the summer; and in the first week of school, teachers rejected by a wide margin a new tentative agreement reached between negotiators for the School Board and the District Educators Council. Pat Markham, communications director for the District, told the RoundTable that several meetings are scheduled to renew the negotiations.

ETHS Providing More Education For High-Demand Careers

By Jennie Berkson

The Applied Sciences and Technology (AST) Department at ETHS is keeping up with current work force trends by providing opportunities for students to obtain certifications that start them on the road to above-average-paying jobs that may not require a four-year college degree.

AST Department chair Shelley Gates told the District 202 School Board at their Sept. 22 meeting about a recent report issued by the Workforce Alliance, a Washington, D.C. based coalition of community, education, labor and business leaders. The report identified jobs in "the forgotten middle," that have "a shortage of workers, account for nearly half of all employment in Illinois, and are projected to represent nearly 1 million job openings during the decade ending in 2014."

"What, you might ask, does all this have to do with certification programs in the Applied Sciences and Technologies Department?" Ms. Gates asked. "The answer is that the certification programs we have in place, as well as those we are working to implement over the next few years will, in fact, help to prepare them for many of these so-called ‘forgotten middle' positions - those requiring some post-secondary training, but not necessarily a four-year degree. Health care, manufacturing, transportation, law enforcement, and fire safety careers are all mentioned in the report."

In addition to the certification programs already in place for pharmacy technician, nurse assistant and Microsoft Office specialist, Ms. Gates said that "the AST department is committed to expanding its curriculum to include additional industry-recognized certification programs in the areas of automotive technology, early childhood education and culinary arts/food service." In addition, Ms. Gates said that the department was researching the possibility of offering a level- one welding certification for metal sculpture or level-one manufacturing students which would be offered through the American Welding Society.

"The good thing about auto technicians," remarked Ms. Gates, "is the job cannot be outsourced. Someone in another country can't fix your car."

Ms. Gates said that the expansion of the certification offerings was made possible by a $100,000 grant from the Owen L. Coon Foundation, in honor of Owen L. Coon, Jr., a 1951 graduate of ETHS.

"I think you've done a wonderful job in recent years," commented Board member Mary Wilkerson. "It's something I've been advocating for quite some time."

"One of the wonderful things about focusing on certifications for our students is that these certifications translate into real dollars," said Board member Omar Khuri. "It's the difference between minimum wage and $10 [to] $20 dollars an hour. In addition, I don't think that people should [necessarily] see these certifications as an alternative to college. [They] can be used to earn money while you're in college."

ETHS Kudos

Twelve ETHS seniors have been named semifinalists in two scholarship programs sponsored by the National Merit Corporation: The 10 National Merit finalists are Megan Cutrofello, Erin DeGrand, Christopher Graham, Josephinee Herman, Micah Kaufman-Wright, Aaron Nachsin, Margaret O'Leary, Sarah Raven, Duncan Reilly, and Samuel Rosen. The two National Merit semifinalists are Preston Bateman and Adrienne Slaughter.
In addition, 30 ETHS students have been named Commended Students in two scholarship programs sponsored by the National Merit Corporation: Noah Alexander, Rebecca A. Bradish, Hannah E. Burson, Samuel Carruthers, Natalie M. Cook, Taylor C. Culbert, Sylvie S. Doppelt, Joseph S. Eskin, Rebecca A. Fiori, Sylvia R. Friedman, Madeline P. Giegold, Zoe E. Goodman, Emily O. Herder, Lindsey O. Krug, Max H. Looper, Ruth A. McAuley, Solomon A. Miller, Andrew A. Pope, John G. Prout, Katherine A. Reifler, Jacob M. Roth, Mallika A. Roy, Dylan M. Shearer, Adrienne E. Slaughter, Andrew R. Sowle, Asher M. Stamell, and Brian D. Weisberg. The three National Achievement Commended Students are Joseph Carmichael, Monique Lassere, and Raquel Levy.

ETHS math teacher John Benson is the 2008 recipient of the T.E. Rine Award for outstanding secondary math teaching. This prestigious award is given annually by the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics to one high school math teacher in the state of Illinois. Mr. Benson has taught at ETHS for 39 years.

For the first time, ETHS's student newspaper The Evanstonian has been named a Pacemaker Finalist in the newspaper competition sponsored by the National Scholastic Press Association. The Pacemaker Award is NSPA's highest award, considered by many to be the highest honor in scholastic journalism. Rodney Lowe and The Evanstonian staff will learn on Nov. 15 the winner of the award.

ETHS social worker Aracely Canchola received an inaugural 2008 YWomen Leadership Award on October 2 from the YWCA Evanston/North Shore. A founder of the Evanston Coalition for Latino Resources, she is being honored for empowering Hispanic youth and her grassroots activism.

Kathy Miehls, ETHS Public/Alumni Relations Director, recently won two writing awards from the Illinois Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association. She received an Award of Merit for the brochure "Countdown to Graduation 2008" and an Award of Excellence for the Spring 2008 edition of The KIT, the ETHS alumni newsletter.

Four from ETHS Among ‘Those Who Excel'

Chala Holland, a young Evanston Township High School history teacher, will be among 43 individuals and teams of people from around Illinois to receive top honors on Oct. 17 from the Illinois State Board of Education for their outstanding contributions to education. She is one of only two Illinois teachers to win an Award of Excellence in the Early Career Educator category, a new award created to recognize the accomplishments of teachers in the early years of their careers.

In addition, three ETHS faculty members - vocal music teacher Mary Theresa Reed, school social worker Taya Kinzie, and secretary Ann Carra - are also award recipients in the Those Who Excel program, sponsored by the state education office.

Upcoming Meetings

ETHS will hold its next school board meeting at 7:30pm on October 27 in Room N112. ETHS school board meetings are aired during the week following each meeting at 6:30pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 5:30pm on Sundays on ETHS's Cable TV Channel 18.

YAMO Runs Two More Weekends

YAMO, Evanston Township High School's annual student laughfest, runs Oct. 17, 18, 23-25 at 7:30 p.m. in the school's Upstairs Theatre. This year's show, "YAMOTUBE.COM(edy)," takes on the Presidential candidates, families and family values, popular television shows and movies and new advances in technology. Now in its 51st year, the student revue involves well over 100 students in all aspects of the production.

Reserved-seat tickets at $10 are available through the ETHS Fine Arts Hotline, 847-424-7848. The Upstairs Theatre is handicapped accessible by elevator to the theater lobby. Parking is best for YAMO in the school's rear lot entered off Church or Lake street. Enter through the Bacon/West entrance.

Fall Music Festival

Evanston Township High School's music division will present its Fall Music Festival at 7 p.m. on Oct. 28, in the school's auditorium, 1600 Dodge Ave. The festival, showcasing students in the choirs, band and orchestra, will feature a program of popular and classical music. Tickets at $3 for adults, $1 for students, free to senior citizens, will be available at the door.